MechJeb Is Your Friend

MechJeb

One of the cool things about Kerbal Space Program is that there are many free mods available that, once installed in the basic program, change the way the game looks and works. One of the most popular mods is MechJeb, short for Mechanical Jebediah. Basically this mod works as an autopilot feature. The very fact that MechJeb will fly your ship for you has caused some purists to cry "Foul!" and "Cheat". I have a different opinion, MechJeb is your friend.

MechJeb can control your ship from launchpad to splashdown and all points in between. Actually, it can even help you in designing your craft, although I have never tried to figure out how to use it in this manner.

Can't get into space or circularize your orbit at 80,000 m? MechJeb.  Can't create nodes to transfer to Mun and circularize around it at 8,000 m? MechJeb. Can't land on Mun? MechJeb. Want to land your craft at the Kerbal Space Center? Yep, MechJeb. Given all it can do you can see why some people might complain.

But no matter how cool KSP is, it's just a game. It is not real life. If you are frustrated at your own lack of ability this little add on can help you enjoy the program. Interestingly, in real life NASA does use computer programs to perform these same functions. The astronauts may need to know how to perform the operations in case something goes wrong but the computer program is going to do most of the flying. In fact there are aircraft that can't be flown by pilots without computers. My point? Don't let the complainers who don't need help stop you from using MechJeb.

A lot of my joy with Kerbal Space Program has been in the design and planning of the mission and then seeing it carried out. When things go horribly wrong (often) I enjoy learning from my mistakes, correcting them, and then sending a rescue mission. I don't need to fly by the seat of my pants at every move to have fun. That said, one of the amazing things about MechJeb is watching how it handles a maneuver. It is almost like having someone sit beside you and teach you how to fly. I told you, MechJeb is your friend.

Without the add on, I can put a rocket in a circular orbit and create the nodes to transfer to Mun and beyond. I can set a lander on Minmus by myself. I can bring Jebediah home safely to Kerbin. A lot of what I can do now, I owe to MechJeb for showing me how it is done.

Another benefit of MechJeb is after you have launched successfully a few hundred times, it gets kind of monotonous. This is a great time and place for MechJeb. It doesn't mind doing the tedious work.

Now don't leave here thinking everything will be roses and sunshine and all your space maneuvers will work perfectly because of this mod. They won't. The truth is just as Kerbals are noted for their courage and stupidity, MechJeb, for all its merits, tends to stop working or not work as expected - often. Unless you really enjoy 'Revert To Launch', you need to learn by observing what MechJeb is doing when things go correctly, so you are prepared to fly manually when everything goes terribly wrong. You know, just a normal day in the Kerbal Space Program.

MechJeb is available for download at Kerbal Space Port